Focus on FWS - Friends of Woodstock School

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An independent
501(c)(3)
Organization
Friends
of Woodstock
School,
Inc.S theC educational
mission
and
Focus on...
Friends of Woodstock School, Inc.
an independent 501(c)(3) non-profit organization supporting the
educational mission and purposes of WOODSTOCK SCHOOL
An Occasional Newsletter
Issue No. 10 March 2015
Lorrie DomanSheydayi ’87
and Dr.
Eleanor
Nicholson
share a love of
Woodstock
p. 2
SAGE Scholarship
Program at Woodstock
p. 1
Profiles... Books...
Annual Meeting...
and More
p. 3-4
Invite Students to Apply for SAGE and Merit Scholarships
by Jane Cummings
Executive Director, FWS
Do you know a high school student eager to stretch their
wings and explore the world? Do you have a child or grandchild who
would benefit from the Woodstock education you enjoyed? Then why
not introduce them to the SAGE experience at Woodstock?
FWS, in its earlier incarnation as KWI, developed the SAGE
program to enable high school students to spend a semester, a year, or
longer at Woodstock. We have once again taken over the promotion
and recruitment of students who want to have a life changing
Woodstock educational experience.
The process of applying as a SAGE student is now different.
Interested students should go to the Woodstock website to apply
directly. The admissions office will process the application and, if
qualified, admit the student. If financial aid is required but the student
does not meet the Woodstock criteria for financial aid, Woodstock will
refer the student to FWS for consideration of a FWS Scholarship.
For nearly 30 years, FWS has financially supported the school’s
scholarship program with donations from alumni and friends in North
America. However, the FWS contribution to the school’s financial aid
program has rarely benefitted the children or grandchildren of North
American alumni. Many of them are eager to send their children to
Woodstock, but do not have the financial means to do so. Now
Friends of Woodstock School, Inc.
Woodstock is in a strong enough financial position to provide the
financial aid grants from its operating budget. FWS in turn is focusing
its attention on nourishing the roots of North American alumni’s loyalty
to the school’s educational mission by encouraging students from North
American families to attend Woodstock.
All students applying for FWS scholarships must first be
admitted to Woodstock by the school’s Admissions Committee. FWS
offers two kinds of scholarships:
SAGE-Woodstock Scholarships designated for students from North
America who meet certain criteria such as being members of a family
with prior connections to Woodstock or students residing in North
America, but in need of financial aid.
Merit Scholarships intended for students who demonstrate meritorious
achievement in academic work, the arts, leadership, service activities, or
in any other priority area identified by the school. Merit candidates can
come from any country or background.
For more information on SAGE-Woodstock and the FWS
scholarship program, click here. And then become a student recruiter
for FWS and Woodstock.
Contact: janecummings@me.com
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Eleanor Nicholson Reflects on Education and Woodstock
by Marianna Presler
“The preschool and elementary years are where the action is in
education, ” observes Dr. Eleanor Nicholson, acting principal of
Woodstock School in 2011 and current president of the board of
directors. Eleanor has had experience in all levels of teaching from preschool to graduate school and in the public, independent, and charter
school sectors.
Parents are first teachers - Readers of FOCUS are aunts, uncles,
parents, grandparents, teachers, and cherished friends of small children.
Eleanor, who has taught at the Erikson Institute for Early Childhood
Education in Chicago, expects that in the pre-school and elementary
years, teachers integrate learning while building the skills of reading,
writing, math, inquiry, and intrapersonal and interpersonal strengths of
each individual child. She also reminds us that “the parent is the child’s
first teacher, not through ‘telling’ but by encouraging exploration,
supporting curiosity, and ensuring a child’s safety and emotional and
intellectual well-being.”
As the child continues through school, the academic subjects of
science, mathematics, literature, social sciences, languages, and so on
become the focus of study and inquiry, although, as at Woodstock,
experiential and interdisciplinary learning remain goals.
How did Eleanor Nicholson find her way to Woodstock School?
When University of Chicago professors and family friends, Lloyd and
Susanne Rudolph, went to India on research trips, their children attended
Woodstock and, in 1979, enticed Eleanor’s daughter, Martha, to join
them for her sophomore year. In 2000, Martha’s Woodstock friend, Jeet
Singh, invited Eleanor to join his newly formed Winterline Foundation
board, and she became involved in international education in India. She
McJimsey ’54
also served as interim principal of Kodaikanal International School
in 2004-2005 and was a member of the search committee that
happily found Jonathan Long, Woodstock’s principal. Her
philosophy and leadership, as acting principal and board president,
have profoundly influenced the school.
Nicholson women at Woodstock -Not only did Eleanor’s
daughter, Martha, attend Woodstock (’79-’80), but so also did her
granddaughter, Nora ’06. Both women wrote their college essays on
this transformative experience, and both are committed to serving
the disadvantaged. Martha is a pediatrician in San Francisco. During
her college years, she worked in Mother Teresa’s home in Calcutta.
Nora, who also worked in Calcutta as well as Bihar, is a nurse who
aspires to be a midwife.
When Eleanor Nicholson awakens in her Southside Chicago
apartment, her eyes fall upon a large photograph that hangs at the
end of her bed. It is a view of the Himalayas taken from the chukkar.
We asked her what sounds and sights does she carry with her. She
responded, “I love the sound of the Muslim call to worship every
morning in Mussoorie, announcing the beginning of a new day. I
love going to St. Paul’s and singing all my favorite hymns. I love
walking through the bazaar and finding craft and antique treasures.”
“Most of all, I love the Woodstock community, with its
kindness, closeness, and commitment to India and to teaching and
learning.”
Contact: RMcJimsey@comcast.net
Mary Quist-Nevins is a Financial Literacy Leader
By Helen Arnott ’60
Mary Quist-Newins ’71 was only at Woodstock during her freshman year in high school.
However, she credits that year with transformative magic. As a 15-year old, she developed an
enduring affection for India and the Indian people. She learned about independence from her
parental home and gained self-confidence. While she was challenged by the school’s rigorous
academics, she also admits to having had a lot of fun. She was gated regularly, was always late
for class, and actually fell down the khud once.
Mary’s parents were committed Christians and central in developing her approach to life
and finances. She is the president of MoneyWeave, a comprehensive financial firm in St. Paul,
MN. Mary works with clients on risk management, estate, and retirement planning and legacy
gifts. She helps them maximize financial success. She is a consultant to companies and
institutions, an adjunct professor at the on-line American College of Financial Services, and an
instructor at the University of St. Thomas.
Women’s empowerment is a strong thread in Mary’s work. She is interested in financial
literacy, and in 2010 published Women and Money, Matters of Trust. She offers pro bono consulting
and cares about human rights, poverty alleviation, and education. While growing up, in addition
to the year in India, Mary’s family lived in Jamaica, Libya, and several American states. She feels comfortable in different cultures.
We asked Mary what books she is currently reading. She recommends God is at Work: Transforming People and Nations through Business by
Ken Eldred and How to Change the World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas by David Bornstein. She reads anything to do with
India. Mary also speaks Norwegian and writes the official standard for Norwegian, called Bokmal.
Mary is looking forward to renewing Woodstock connections at the annual meeting, July 10-13, 2015, being held in her home territory of
St. Paul and the University of St. Thomas.
Contact: shireen55@hotmail.com
Friends of Woodstock School
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Alumni Volunteers Find Role at Woodstock
by Anne Lind, Staff 1968-1971, 1975-1980
Do you remember this phrase from the Woodstock School creed? “We will transmit this school greater,
better, and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us.” For Margo Warner Curl ’67, her volunteer trips to
organize the school’s archives “fulfill that obligation instilled in us as students.” Max Marble ’67, another
volunteer, loves “returning to the majestic and beautiful Mussoorie hills which were so much a part of my life
while growing up. Volunteering at Woodstock gives the trip a sense of purpose.”
My husband, Dan, and I served on the Woodstock music staff from 1968-1971 and from 1975-1980. We
felt that we “grew up” at Woodstock in our 20s and 30s. Upon retirement in 2006, we wanted to spend time in
India. If Woodstock could use us, we hoped to give back to an institution that had given much to us.
In 2008, Stephen Alter, then Director of Development and Alumni Affairs, encouraged us to come.
When we arrived for a two-month stint in the spring of 2009, Steve asked me to proofread publications. Over
the next few years, I returned to work on other projects, including planning and executing a celebration of the
100th anniversary of WOSA in 2011. Dan has helped in the music department, working especially with string
players. I am currently gathering and organizing material for the third volume of Woodstock School’s history,
Anne Lind
covering 1983-2013.
Other recent alumni volunteers include Li Chu ’59 who helped train the finance and alumni departments in software and database usage. Cate
Whitcomb ’66 is another archivist volunteer, for whom the school’s archives are also her family’s archives. Her parents’ class of 1942 donated the
funds to establish the archives and give them a permanent place on campus.
Why do we come to work and not just visit? Partly, it is an opportunity to be surrounded by the Landour hillside, one of the special places on
earth. Another reason is to participate in the ever-changing organism that is Woodstock School and to watch its evolution. (The alumni office
provides housing and meals for volunteers, depending on availability of guest rooms.) Margo believes that the school is a better school than it was
when she was a student. Max enjoys interacting with the Woodstock community and adds, “The food in the dining room is great.”
Contact: annelind@me.com
Student Chahat ’17 Profiles Bidha Singh
Helen Arnott ’60 and member of the alumni committee suggested
that our readership would enjoy a profile of a current Woodstock
employee. Following up on this good idea, Chahat ’17, a tenth grader at
Woodstock, interviewed Bidha Singh,
who has been serving food in the
student dining room and cleaning the
staff dining area since 1974.
Chahat writes, “Like every parent,
Bidha Singh works hard to earn
money for his children to study, for his
dream is to see them become
successful in life. He wants his
children to earn respect in their work,
as he has done at Woodstock. He has
been doing work at the drop of a hat
for Woodstock as he knows that it is
difficult to earn respect. Singh is very
confident about the kind of work he
puts up for the staff members and children because he knows that hard
work pays.”
One of the reasons that Bidha Sngh has been at Woodstock for 41
years is that he likes being around children. He appreciates the love he
receives from the Woodstock community, and he is thankful to
Woodstock for that love. At the end of the interview, Singh admitted to
Chahat, “During the one month holiday in the winter and the 18-day
summer holiday, he misses the smiles of the students which give him
relief when he is working.”
Chahat, our student journalist, entered Woodstock in ninth grade.
He has played tennis since he was seven years old, and his greatest
passion is writing poems.
Contact: chahat@woodstock.ac.in
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Miedema Daughter and Father Chronicle
Mussoorie and Landour’s Histories
Virgil D. Miedema and his daughter,
Stephanie, have written what is being
hailed as the most authoritative and
complete history of Mussoorie and
Landour. Their book, Mussoorie and
Landour: Footprints of the Past, traces life in
the hill stations from the nineteenth
century through India’s independence in
1947 and beyond.
This is a book that will appeal to
members of the worldwide Woodstock family, who may discover
within its pages bits of history and local lore that are new to them,
despite having spent perhaps years on the hillside. The narrative is
accompanied by beautiful photographs,
historical maps, and old postcards.
While living and working in Delhi,
the Miedema family was introduced to
Mussoorie in the mid-1990s by their
friends and “old Woodstock hands” Cate
Whitcomb and the late Doug Pickett.
Thus began an enduring fascination and
interest in the twin towns. Virgil is retired
from the U.S Agency for International
Development, and Stephanie works for
the United Nations in Bangkok.
The book is published by Rupa Publications Pvt Ltd, New
Delhi, and is available on Amazon.com
Friends of Woodstock School, Inc.
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St. Olaf Student Teacher Program
Will Be Honored by FWS in July
by Lorrie Doman-Sheydayi ’87
Administrators of the respected St. Olaf College Student Teaching
Program at Woodstock School will be honored at the 2015 FWS Annual
Meeting & Reunion in St. Paul this July.
Professors Joe Iverson and Myron
Solid initiated and oversaw the
program from its inception in 1977, 38
years ago. Over 77 student teachers
have spent a semester on the Landour
hillside, immersing themselves in the
Woodstock community and educating
students in a variety of subjects under
the guidance of master teachers.
Both educators to be honored at
our Khana Banquet passionately
believe in the benefit and opportunity
Myron Solid
of international exposure. They have worked to create an academically
vigorous educational experience for the young teachers, as well as to send
Woodstock the best talent within their student body.
When asked, “Why India? How
Woodstock?” Joe goes back to his time as a
Fulbright Scholar at Pune University. His
interest for India flared and upon his return
to campus in Northfield, Minnesota, he
immediately advocated for an India program.
Through serendipitous acquaintances,
Woodstock became the first of four such
international programs St. Olaf operates,
including another at Kodaikanal
International School.
Joe and Myron have each travelled to
Mussoorie many times and are strong
Joe Iverson
supporters of our school. The student teacher
program continues this summer, when two more St. Olaf women embark on
another chapter in the warm legacy between the two educational institutions.
To hear more about Professors Joe Iverson and Myron Solid, please register
for the FWS Annual Meeting & Reunion this July 10-13 at
www.fwsfoundation.org or call 425-353-8422.
Contact: ldomansheydayi@yahoo.com
Woodstock Choir Will Perform
at Lincoln Center, New York
Twenty-one Woodstock students and two chaperones will
be participating in a week long program for high school and
college musicians in New York City. The program will
culminate in a concert performance at Alice Tully Hall in
Lincoln Center on Monday, April 6 at 7:30 p.m. The
Woodstock choir will be paired with John Rutter’s Requiem and
the Pittsburg State Wind Ensemble. Tickets can be purchased
on-line or visit the Lincoln Center website. Woodstock alumni
in New York City will help host the students during the visit.
Friends of Woodstock School, Inc.
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We Seek Nominations for the 2015
Glenn Conrad Volunteer Service Award
The Glenn Conrad Volunteer Service Award
honors and recognizes alumni and friends of
Woodstock School for outstanding volunteer service
of time, expertise, and commitment, which result in
the improvement, development, and enhancement of
the mission, vision, and goals of Friends of
Woodstock School and/or Woodstock School. For
more information on the Award, click here.
Nominations should include 1) a nominating letter
describing the volunteer’s service, the nature,
duration, and purpose of the service, and how the
service benefited FWS and/or Woodstock School; 2)
Two supporting letters endorsing the nomination.
These letters should be sent, by May 1, 2015, to
the President of Friends of Woodstock School,
Marlin Schoonmaker (schoonmarlin@me.com). A task
force, appointed by Marlin, will review the
nominations. The FWS Board of Directors will
make the final decision on the recommendations of
the task force. Successful nominees will be invited to
attend the FWS Annual Meeting, July 11-13, 2015 in
St. Paul, MN The award will be in the form of a
plaque and citation and will be announced in the
publications of FWS and Woodstock School.
The award honors the leading and decisive role
of Glenn Conrad ’68 in the alumni affairs of FWS
and Woodstock School. The award in 2014 was
presented to Li Chu in recognition of her years of
outstanding volunteer efforts at FWS and Woodstock.
FWS Board of Directors
Marlin Schoonmaker ’67 - President
Woodrow Turner ’61 - Vice-President
David Schoonmaker ’62 - Secretary
Chris Morris ’87 - Treasurer
Pritam Advani ’76
Lorrie Doman-Sheydayi ’87
Virgil Miedema
Molly Seiders ’87
Jonathan Long - Principal, Woodstock School
Friends of Woodstock School, Inc.
724 2nd Street
Mukilteo, WA 98275
Phone: 425-353-8422
fwsfoundation@gmail.com
Executive Director - Jane Cummings
Administrative Manager - David Wheeler
Database Administrator - Li Chu ’59
FOCUS Editors - Marianna Presler McJimsey ’54
Jane Cummings
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